Kids in the Kitchen

I have a hard time turning down offers to cook with kids since they always know how to have fun. And they look so cute I want to squish them!  So when I was asked to participate in the Junior League of Greater New Haven's "Kids in the Kitchen" Health Fair, of course I said yes.

These are kids who participate in the city's YMCA programs, many of whom come from families that don't have access to or can't afford to eat fresh organic produce on a regular basis.  It seemed like the perfect opportunity to introduce them to the concept of SMOOOOOOOOTHIES!

There was a little hesitancy at first when the crowd of kids first rushed through the doors and saw a table with Dixie cups filled with a mysterious green liquid.  But it didn't take much encouragement to get them to take a sip.

And once they did, they held out their soggy cups for refill after refill.  I made mixes of Banana, Pear, Melon, Pineapple, Mango, and Kale.  When they asked what "that green stuff" was, I said it's kale, which is even better than spinach, and will make you even stronger than Popeye.  "More, Please!!"  Keep eating those fruits and veggies!!

Special thanks to Stephanie Evans and everyone from the Junior League who worked hard to make this a successful event.  Also, special thank you to VegFund for providing a stipend for the fresh organic produce and Vegan Outreach for their compelling literature.  Many, many parents were curious and picked up a brochure on their way through.  Yay!

(Relatively) Healthy Cooking in a Hurry

I had the first meeting of my 4-week West Hartford Adult Ed. "Healthy Cooking in a Hurry" class last night.  After a full 8-hour day of census training and hour-long drive from New Haven, I was feeling like most people do at the end of the day:  not looking forward to cooking dinner.  Alas, I had a group of 8 hungry students awaiting a delicious meal, so I had to oblige.

Somewhere at the midway point in the three-hour class, I got a second wind that carried me through to the finish line.  The menu included Asparagus and Leek Risotto, Baked Tofu with Arugula Pesto, Wilted Escarole with Toasted Pine Nuts and a dessert of Chocolate Dipped Coconut Almond Macaroon Cookies.  I think it helped knowing there was a chocolate reward for the ride home.  

See you all next week!

Eggplant Caponata with Crostini

In about a month I'll be catering a vegan graduation party (congratulations, Rachel!), so I prepared some eggplant caponata and olive tapenade for a tasting tomorrow.  Both are recipes that need to be prepared at least a day in advance so that the flavors have time to blend together.

It's amazing how such simple ingredients can create such a robust flavor after slowly simmering in a pot.  My secret ingredient for the caponata is sundried tomatoes, which add that little umami kick.  So delicious.  And I use an aged balsamic vinegar instead of the traditional red wine vinegar for a little sweetness.  I love this recipe, and I'm sure it will be even more delectable tomorrow.

Eggplant Caponata

1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium eggplant, 1/2” dice, about 3 cups

1 cup chopped onions, 1/2” dice

1 cup chopped cherry tomatoes, cut in quarters

1/8 tsp hot red pepper flakes

2 cloves minced garlic

2 Tbl tomato paste

3 Tbl balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup green olives, sliced

2 Tbl capers

1-2 Tbl maple syrup

1/4 cup minced parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil. Add the eggplant, onions and a pinch of salt and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes until soft, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes, red pepper flakes and garlic and cook for about 10-15 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Add the remaining ingredients, bring to boil, cover, lower heat, and simmer for 5-10 minutes. Remove the pan lid if the mixture becomes too wet (this is supposed to be the consistency of a relish, and it’s okay if the eggplant becomes mushy).  Refrigerate for a day, and taste to adjust the tart-sweet balance by adding a touch more maple syrup or vinegar.  Serve at room temperature as a spread for Crostini garnished with fresh parsley.

Last night's dinner

Normally on a Thursday night I go for something simple for dinner:  pasta, rice and beans, a salad, maybe even just a bowl of oatmeal.  Yeah, that's how exciting it can be in the Well on Wheels kitchen when not cooking for clients.  But I have a class coming up next week and I wanted to test some recipes.

The portobello mushroom caps looked particularly good, so I picked up a couple with the intention of marinating them in a balsamic vinaigrette then baking them in the oven.  I would serve them with leek and baby pea risotto with ratatouille.  This seemed like a good plan, but I just felt like the "meat" portion wouldn't be substantial enough, so I decided to fill the caps with some tamari marinated tofu.  Perfect!  If only I had a handful of shredded Daiya mozzerella to melt on top, this meal would've been over the top.  It was pretty delicious, nonetheless. 

Although the meal was filling and satisfying, I was craving something sweet for dessert.  I browsed the fridge:  nothing.  Then the freezer:  the mango ice pops just weren't gonna cut it.  And then I noticed a little box of pearls on the freezer door, tapioca pearls.  Eureka!  These would work perfectly with the leftover coconut milk I had in the fridge and the fresh strawberries I had bought earlier in the day.  It was a little tedious stirring the heated mixture for about 20 minutes, but in the end, worth it.  The perfect ending to a perfect meal.

Happy Vegan Earth Day!

Even though green living has become trendy, it doesn't mean it should be dismissed as a fad. There are so many steps you can take to make your life "greener," and those changes can have a ripple effect in your family, workplace, neighborhood, school, and community. Yes, even the planet: we're all in it together, after all.  Why not begin this Earth Day?

These steps can mean recycling newspapers at home and copy paper at work, or using energy-efficient light bulbs, grocery shopping with cloth bags, and buying locally-grown foods. While these are all important steps, they will not benefit the planet nearly as much as switching to a vegan diet.

70% of the world's potable water is used to raise livestock for food and 80% of the world's produce is used to feed these animals. How many people could be spared from a life of malnutrition and disease if even just a small percentage of this water and food was used to feed people? And imagine how much cleaner the world would be as a result.  All it takes is each one of us reducing our consumption of animals and animal products to make this possible.

Here are some tips for honoring Mama Gaia three times a day, at breakfast, lunch and dinner:

Eat local. Transporting food great distances requires a lot of fuel and produces toxic auto emissions. Purchase from farmer's markets instead.
Eat organic. Toxic chemicals from pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers leech into soil and contaminate groundwater. Not to mention what they do to people who eat food with their residue.
Grow your own. If you have a piece of land, grow your own veggies. If not, adopt a community garden plot and connect with nature.
Go vegan (Come on. . . you knew it was coming!) Animal agriculture produces more greenhouse gas emissions than automobiles. Meat-based diets require 10-20 times as much land as plant-based diets - nearly half of the world's grains & soybeans are fed to animals. Animal waste and feed cropland dump more pollutants into our waterways than all other human activities combined. Say NO to industrial poop!

For more about what you can do this Earth Day, read this great article, "This Earth Day, Go Vegan," in The Guardian.

Half a Head and a Handful of Roots

This is one of those meals that you don't know how it will turn out until you're done.  When I looked in my fridge, all I found was a half a head of cauliflower, a handful of baby carrots, and a few onions.  Yeah, I know.  What's a chef to do?  I decided to try making a cauliflower and carrot curry.

In a pinch, it always helps to have a can of coconut milk in the pantry. You can use it for curries, soups, and even baked goods.  My favorite is Thai Kitchen which comes in organic and low fat (I always go for the full fat for full flavor).  On the side I'm making some jasmine rice, and the sweet aroma is already wafting through the kitchen and into my office as I type this.

I started by cutting the cauliflower into large florets, the baby carrots into wedges and the onion into a large dice.  Then I dropped them into a hot pan with olive oil and sauteed them on medium high heat for about five minutes until the cauliflowers had some golden color.

I added a little salt, curry powder and coconut milk and brought the mix to a boil.  Then I lowered the heat, covered the pan and simmered about 10 minutes until the cauliflower could easily be cut with a spoon.

Gotta say, this is one of the quickest, easiest and most delicious lunches you could possibly imagine.  Really rich and decadent with only about 1/4 cup of coconut milk.  Add it to your repertoire of fail-safe recipes!